Erika’s Lighthouse is a nonprofit based in Illinois whose mission is to destigmatize depression among adolescents through education and spreading awareness about mental health. Their programs are founded on four distinct pillars: the power of positivity, the power to change the world, the power of programs that spread, and the power of trust and integrity.
Founded after parents Ginny and Tom Neuckranz lost their 14-year-old daughter Erika to adolescent depression, their loss became a rally for suicide prevention awareness and healing. Their diverse team of educators, psychologists, and marketers are united around a goal to craft the most efficient mental health curriculum for US school systems.
I had the honor of interviewing two representatives from their organization and am thrilled to explore their strategies to cultivate a safe space for young people across the world.
Over the past 20 years since its establishment, Erika’s Lighthouse has reached over 700,000 students in over 2,000 schools across 49 states and 21 countries. Vice president of programs Katie Conklin said Erika’s Lighthouse is in more than 2,500 schools across the country.
“We have a lot of American schools that use our programs. One of the things that’s important to Erica’s Lighthouse, it’s important to our board of directors, is that everything that we do is free for school communities,” Conklin said.
According to student surveys, after completing the program, 96% of teens felt more connected with trusted adults. Surveys showed 73% of teens agreed they would be more comfortable speaking to peers about their mental health, and 83% demonstrated proficiency in knowledge about mental health topics such as depression or anxiety.
In the future, Erika’s Lighthouse has a vision so they can continue serving as a beacon of light for students around the world.
“We would like to impact a million students a school year … we’d like to be in 5,000 schools,” media contact leader Kelly Maicon said.
They aspire to cultivate inclusive, safe school environments, ensure all students can speak with trusted adults, and know that they are worthy of good mental health.
To expand the reach of its mental health programs for more school districts, the organization has employed three distinct strategies. They are partnering with school administrators, fostering a “train the trainer” model, and conducting studies that relay the benefits of collaboration.
Counselors and school principals are primary liaisons between implementing mental health curriculum and speaking to students about their concerns. Erika’s Lighthouse champions a specific framework for educating school leaders.
“Students spend 70% of their waking hours in a school building, and we want them to feel like they can connect with the adults in their lives that are in that building,” Conklin said.
Building a “train the trainer” model requires an established curriculum and organization representatives who present their mental health awareness strategies at teacher conferences. These educators then teach counselors, school psychologists, and other faculty members so all staff are equipped with a toolkit for success.
Erika’s Lighthouse offers programs outside of school such as Family Engagement and Policy Training workshops, which benefit marginalized communities. Classroom education and curriculum education, however, are specialties ambassadors seek to spread over the coming years. Every program is free of cost and evidence-informed.
Online resources are available at erikaslighthouse.org which contains accessible monthly webinars, training walkthroughs for community members, and a portal for websites translated into multiple languages. For younger students in elementary or lower middle schools, interactive activities with fun prizes promote engagement.
Erika’s Lighthouse conducts research studies to launch media campaigns about the importance of mental wellness programs and revising old lesson plans.
From their most recent press release, Erika’s Lighthouse revealed compounding research from surveys they collected from students after finishing the program. Their research survey is titled “2024 Help-Seeking Around Mental Health Report.”
“We put out a press release, a wire press release, which went to markets all over the country. I want to say we reached an audience number, if I remember the most recent figure, it was 68 million,” Maicon said.
Post-program, students reported feeling better equipped to handle anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and self-deprecation. These results were compiled into a comprehensive impact report, which is published on their website along with a 20-year overview detailing their reach.
“I think sometimes it’s really easy for adults to forget that young people have a lot of stressors in their life,” Conklin. “So, we need to kind of recognize: how can we help people manage those stressors and know that there’s a difference between stress and…having a mental health disorder?”
Students in upper middle school and high schools across the country are encouraged to follow the nonprofit’s vision statement and become advocates for suicide prevention. All clubs affiliated with their organization are guaranteed financial support and other resources such as bracelets that provide crisis hotline information or “care kits.”
To get involved as a teen attending high school in the United States, check out the Erika’s Lighthouse website to learn more about their youth advisory board and another for starting an Empowerment Club associated with the organization.
If you are seeking help for yourself or a friend, please dial the 9-8-8 National Mental Health Crisis Hotline.
